Residents oppose 150-metre setback on Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway

Residents of Eleko communities in Ibeju-Lekki Local Council have appealed to the Federal Government and the Lagos State Government to suspend what they described as fresh plans to enforce a 150-metre setback along sections of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, warning that the move could wipe out long-established ancestral settlements.

Chief of Odofin of Opo Ijebu Kingdom, Kunle Balogun, who spoke on behalf of the community at the weekend, said although they support the coastal road as a legacy infrastructure project, recent red markings allegedly placed on houses by individuals said to be linked to the Office of the Surveyor-General and private investors have heightened fears of new demolitions.

According to him, the affected settlements predate the coastal highway project by decades and were gradually opened up through communal efforts and successive administrations. He recalled that before formal government intervention, residents contributed labour and materials to construct access roads linking remote villages to adjoining areas.

While commending President Bola Tinubu for initiating Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road, which he described as transformative, Balogun alleged that repeated realignments of the corridor have already led to the demolition of homes, shrines and other ancestral heritage sites within parts of the axis.

He further claimed that during earlier road expansions linked to industrial developments in the Lekki corridor, some families received between N9 million and N20 million as compensation for demolished buildings, but argued that such sums are inadequate to acquire land or rebuild homes in present-day Ibeju-Lekki, where property values have surged.

Balogun pointed out that a Community Liaison Officer (CLO) for Section 1 of the project confirmed that a Grievance Redress Committee was inaugurated in November to address complaints from host communities, but disclosed that the committee has not reconvened since its inauguration, noting that efforts to obtain clarification from relevant authorities on the alleged 150-metre markings have not yielded definitive responses.

Balogun urged both the Federal Ministry of Works and the Lagos State Government to clarify the project’s alignment and setback provisions. He also appealed for dialogue and a possible waiver for existing communities, insisting that infrastructure development should not come at the expense of ancestral homes and long-standing settlements.

When The Guardian contacted the Chief Press Secretary to the Minister of Works, Uchenna Orji, on February 14, 2026, he stated that he was on leave and declined to comment. (Guardian)